Fasting or Feasting

 Navratri is the season for garba, Durga pooja and fasting. While garba and the pooja festivities are  being enjoyed, I was contemplating as to why do people fast? Apparently they wish to wash away their sins, indulge in a little soul nourishing and generally feel good about being involved in a spiritual activity of sorts. I wonder who coined the term "fast" for an activity which is actually to slow things down,  I would like to believe even our metabolism slows down, perhaps to enable us to reflect on our inner self. Then why this term, well I suppose English is not a scientific language, such dichotomies are not unusual. Incidentally in Hindi a fast can be a simple "vrat" which most of us observe, where we don't have to resort to total abstinence from food and intake is permitted with certain restrictions or it can be "upwas", where one has to totally abstain from food. 

Most of us follow the former, i.e. "vrat", observe a fast, where we can actually 'feast'. Traditionally at home, we have been observing these "f(e)asts" on some special occasions such as Maha Shivratri, Krishna Janmashtami and during Maha-Ashtami both the Spring and Autumn ones. As kids we would eagerly await these festivals, as the ‘carte du jour’ was a splendid spread of mouth watering delicacies and the best part was 

that it was supposed to be partaken as a spiritual activity. Apart from  the basket of choicest seasonal fruits, the fare commenced with tapioca pearls commonly known as Sago or Sabudana, its khichdi and kheer with generous dose of potato chips as accompaniments, thereafter there were sweets such as ‘halwa’, no, not the usual Wheat or Gram Flour one, but made from flour of the exotic sounding ‘water chestnut’ or Singhara in common parlance. Now don’t be disheartened if you feel that the traditional breads and vegetables are off the menu, you are in for a surprise, pooris or parathas of flour made out of kattu or rajgira or singhara is permitted with certain vegetables such as bottle gourd or the all weather potatoes which the French refer to as 'Pom de Terre' meaning "apple of the earth".  Of course Yogurts, Cheese and all other dairy products are more than welcome, which implies that desserts such as Shrikhand too forms part of the menu during the spring months. Some of us would naturally scoff at this concept and practice of fasting but mind you we must consider the original purpose of indulging in this supposed abstinence, well it was to be mindfully aware of all the activities which we involved ourselves with, or in other words be ‘meditative’. So here we are, savoir in our belief that we are totally immersed in the gastronomic delights, and thereby embarking on the path of spirituality. In 

North India, people generally abstain from alcohol and non-vegetarian food during this period and their penance is such that on the Dushehra  day itself they not only vanquish Ravan but all the demons in the form of poultry and livestock with vengeance and enjoy their favourite elixirs to celebrate the occasion. The officers messes in Indian Army also adhere to the Tuesdays abstinence unwritten rule where no non-vegetarian food is served and the tipplers have to suffer a dry day. 

Interestingly while all the religions follow some sort of fasting during certain holy periods, Islam during Ramadan, Christianity during Lent, Jains and Buddhists too, but Zorostrians   or Parsis don't have any such qualms.  Mahatma Gandhi introduced fasting as a non violent means to achieve an end. Hippocrates who is supposedly the father of 'medical fasting', advocated it in certain cases where the patient is prescribed 'abstinence from food' as the preferred mode of treatment. These days of course we hear about 'intermittent fasting' where the person is expected to abstain for a fixed number of hours in a day, i.e. generally refrain for about 16 hours in a day. Doctors confirm that autophagy (consumption of body's own tissues) commences when the body is starved of nutrition which is a healthy process and helps rejuvenate the body.

Be that as it may, as far as I am concerned, with my lean built I am convinced any autophagy will result in extreme starvation so for us the feast form of fasting has been ordained by the Almighty Himself, so just bring them on..

Golfing or Goofing

 Why don't you play Golf? My friends ask me often, now that Achille's tendon injury has put paid to my forays  on the Squash and Tennis Courts. Having spent almost half a century in uniform, sports and physical activities are as essential as the morning cuppa or the morning newspaper. A day without any activity i.e. a sedentary day is the worst nightmare that most of us  dread the most. The mood is grouchy, kids avoid you and the mistress of the house keeps you at an arm's length. But throw in an outdoor activity and we are rejuvenated, become our usual boisterous chirpy selves again. Kids know that they can ask for the moon and it shall not be denied in these euphoric moments of bliss. So golf should be good enough, it's played outdoors after all. Frankly it is not that I don't indulge in this vice called golf but there are reasons why I could not make much headway.

In the year of the Lord 1999, when the millennium was coming to an end and the world was scared about the impact of Y2K, I was bitten by this bug of golfing. I was headed to Defence Services Staff College at Wellington, which incidentally is in the state of Tamil Nadu in close proximity to Ooty. Thankfully the name change bug has spared this salubrious heaven in the Nilgiris. As is the unwritten norm in the Army that a psc ( Staff College Course qualified) officer must be a golfer as it was considered a prerequisite for scaling the steep pyramid of military hierarchy. Golf courses were the perfect arena for rubbing shoulders with the high and mighty everywhere including the Corporate world. Times have changed, now of course, golf and golf courses are not the places to frequent, instead cycling, running to remain fit is the mantra these days. But back then, possession of a golf set and a decent 18 handicap was considered an asset.  Sure enough I went ahead and procured a used half set from a friend and course-mate, the game is not for the chicken hearted and unless you have deep pockets just stay away. Pre-Sixth Pay Commission, a young Major's take home salary was barely enough to survive for the month. But sacrifices have to be made, so compromise solution was buying a half set, at a princely sum of 9000 which was equivalent to two month's take home salary.  For the uninitiated a half set is half the number of clubs, (a full set comprises 14 of them in the bag while on the course), which suffice for a beginner to get on the course. Since I was at Mhow then, I dutifully hit the driving range to hit a few balls and get acquainted with the sport. There were no coaches here but I did get to watch Mukesh Kumar, the caddie turned professional golfer practising once in a while.

Inspired and motivated I too started off, at first I thought this should be child's play, after all having played decent hockey in the academy where a moving ball needed to be connected and hit, and being a winger I was pretty good at that. But  this small little 'dimpled devil' is a different kettle of fish altogether, as it has its own mind and enjoys putting us in our place by deciding to take the trajectory that she chooses, not where it was intended to traverse. Why am I referring to her in the feminine gender, well do I even need to explain that? We strike the ball alright, but it flies in a curve in the opposite direction where it was intended to be despatched. With different clubs it behaves in an even more erratic manner. Sometimes it was our stance, or our swing or the posture, then it was our approach and if all that was addressed, the wind direction played a spoilsport. A few practise swings for the muscle memory to do the needful, but in my case the muscles suffer from short term memory loss and invariably go bonkers leaving me cursing just about everything under the Sun for the horrible shot that I just executed. The caddie or the friendly four ball chip in and say you looked up just a wee bit early. You know it was the anxiety which forced me to look up and watch the trajectory. Just when we are about to throw in the towel, she (the ball) gets into the benevolent mood and chooses to land where it was directed, in a tease, keeping us hooked for that occasional sweet spot hit and flight.

But the battle was far from over, I landed up in Wellington, where the Golf course of WGC (Wellington Gymkhana Club) is amongst the most picturesque courses in the world. Located amidst tea gardens, undulating sloped fairways, greens either below the tee or at a vertical sixty degree height precariously designed that if you miss it, you simply roll down to where you teed off from. Keeping up with the bisons and the other wildlife for company, I too embarked on this roller coaster, little realising that we have to contend with the caddies, who are supposed to be your friend, philosopher and guide carrying your golf set, advising you on the club to use, the slope of the green etc. Novices like me who invariably hit what is referred to as rough in golf parlance, which  actually is an area, which is heavily wooded  with thick undergrowth. There is no way in hell that the ball can be retrieved from there by ordinary mortals, but caddies have divine eyes, like Sanjay of Mahabharata, they can see exactly where the ball landed, albeit  with a twist, they do not let this secret out to  the Dhritrashtra like golfer, but quietly pocket the ball to be sold to us at a discounted 'used ball' price later. Golf sets are expensive, so are the balls and the other accessories, so used balls are often used for our routine golfing, with new sleeves being retained for special occasions. 

My idea of a successful round on the course was when I returned with 'all balls' in tact, pun intended. Getting back to the accessories, a golfer who is not outrageously attired isn't one, so the shorts or trousers must be in shocking colours, shoes laden with spikes, gloves, shades, bags for carrying the balls etc. I finally did get the hang of it to some extent. Over the years I did manage to hold my handicap of 18 and in fact at one point of time, they even brought it down to 16 when I started to hit the course regularly. Normally golfers aren’t very happy when their handicap goes down as they lose out on the strokes which they earn from their opponents in the four ball, but I was overjoyed as it finally was a vindication that I could actually play the game. Alas that was short-lived, as soon I was back to what is normally referred to as social golfing by bad golfers, where they play 24 to 36 handicap game,

but enjoy the friendly banter of their regular four ball, and if they are course-mates from NDA, that is the icing on the cake, of course the gentle ambling around in the green environs is the other blessing. So here I am waiting to recover fully and return to the course for suffering or rather enjoying the humiliation which this piddly golf ball inflicts on me each time, I step onto the course, but leaving me enticed for that one sweet spot driven 300 yarder, flying with that perfect trajectory landing on the green just a couple of feet away from the ‘hole, waiting for me to tap it in for a well earned birdie or even a par. Call it golfing or goofing, it is definitely addictive.

NIGHTMARE OF ODISHA

Odisha is the land of  Bhagwan Jagannath and Sun temple of Konark, we are also reminded of the famous battle of Kalinga which transformed Ashoka the Great. It is the state of Biju Patnaik who was a national hero of not only India but also Indonesia, Odishi dance form, the birthplace of rashogulla (contested by the Bengalis though) and of course unparalleled nature's bounty. Chilka the largest brackish water lake in India, its coast the breeding ground for turtles and Chandipur range where India has been testing its technological prowess from time to time. Yes it was also the state of Kalahandi where India faced the ignominy of starvation  deaths and the infamous burning down of Christian Missionary Graham Staines with his two sons. But by and large Odiya people are peace loving and God fearing, that is what I had also gathered when I visited Puri, Bubaneshwar, Konark, Gopalpur etc and generally carried that impression until the day when the news of police brutality of a lady and her fiancee broke out. To make matters worse, the fiancee was a serving Army officer and his fiancee was a retired Brigadier's daughter. 

We know that police has a reputation of being high headed, despite coming directly under the respective state,  in this context across the length and breadth of the nation there is a uniformity in approach and actions. It is a fact that FIRs are not recorded, instead the complainants are generally roughed up and discouraged from lodging a formal report. We also understand how the system functions, so the less the number of FIRs, better the state of law and order at least statistically, but actually that is a fallacy. Having known all these aspects and being aware of their past track record, the couple still felt, that they had a chance where the police would react to their complaint and address the issue. May be they felt the recent Kolkata incident would have some effect on the sister state and such acts of eve teasing and hooliganism would not be tolerated. Alas, even in their worst nightmare they would not have imagined the response which they received at the hands of men and women in uniform, though Khaki towards the Olive Greens. 

Without going into the gory details, which most of us are aware by now, I have been pondering over the reason for this outrageous behaviour by the police authorities. In the last couple of years the police high-headedness towards Armed Forces personnel has become more of a norm than an exception. Just the other day there was a report from Rajasthan where it required Col Rajyawardhan Rathore a cabinet minister in the state govt who had to give a piece of his mind to the erring officials who had the gall to tell the soldier that "Hum Police wale tum Army walon ke baap hain" or words to that effect. Irony of the situation cannot be lost on the reader that it is the Army who has come to the rescue of the states each time the law and order situation deteriorates and have to work in close cooperation in Jammu & Kashmir or the North East. The police forces are also headed by IPS officers which is an all India cadre of Group A sevices, the Armed Forces are also officered by Commissioned officers who enjoy a similar status in the hierarchy. We are aware that at the time of independence the Armed Forces enjoyed an exalted status vis a vis the Police Forces but over the years we have witnessed  quite a steep degradation. But the worst blow was the introduction of Non Functional Upgradation for the Group A and B services which was unjustly denied to the Armed Forces. Ever since then, despite a number of clarifications on the subject, all and sundry claim to be senior to the Army officers with equal number of years in service. That feeling has trickled down the cadres and has resulted in this disdain towards army personnel. Earlier it was a common sight for Army flag cars to be saluted by the police personnel deployed for traffic duties, but these days it is not so. 

Every organisation tries to protect its personnel, but when an incident of this nature occurs before trying to save their own, they must honestly ascertain the facts before resorting to the usual SOP in such matters. The fact that the Army Commander and General Officer Commanding of the Area HQ had to intervene is a testimony that things are obviously not normal. Army personnel have acted with phenomenal  restraint as they could have taken steps unilaterally as has happened on some occasions earlier. Oft quoted example is of erstwhile Chief Minister of Punjab Pratap Singh Kairon's son being taken to task by the local Commanding Officer when one of the ladies was targeted by the goons led by his son. General Thimayya's  response when questioned was that if the Army can't protect its women, then how were they expected to protect the nation. Times have changed, I think the authorities have reacted very responsibly and now it is upto the Police Forces to demonstrate that they too can follow the righteous path by giving exemplary punishment to the defaulters that too in a well defined time limit. Unless we set such precedences these incidents will only increase. I am hopeful sanity will prevail.

CAT PEOPLE

 Cats have not taken it kindly and an offended cat is a dangerous one. Shakespeare wrote "Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned", I am sure he was not a cat person, else he would have known that you can't afford to get on the wrong side of the feline species. Republicans are treading on a highly treacherous path by trying to provoke the kitties, alluding to 'cat ladies' in derogatory terms and if that was not enough going on to allege that the mousers were so dumb that they could form part of the menu of the immigrants. Obviously they are ignoramuses, as these furry friends are as royal as the Asiatic Lion in their demeanour and attitude. After all haven't they heard of the tale, where the cat as the guru teaches all the tricks to the lion, but doesn't impart the skill of tree climbing. Lions are the undisputed kings of the jungle, so their gurus naturally are not hoi polloi. 

Anyone who has any experience of having been a pet parent would know that you can teach a dog tricks but cats are in a different league. They order you around, you kowtow to their preferences and in the bargain are trained to be a cat person. We have been fortunate that when we were growing up, we got the opportunity to be groomed by one of these species. We had a wild cat and a pomeranian both as pets at one point of time. While the kitten adopted us when my mother attended to her, when she was badly injured; the pup landed up a little while later. The kitten was not the one to be tied down to happy domesticity, she was wild and adventurous, would be out on a prowl for a hunt every evening. When cats are around mice can't make merry, so the household was pest free, she was the  pest control authority and executive. She would make an appearance in the wee hours of the morning, without bothering us, would settle down for its well earned siesta. Every morning she would demand and get her share of milk, apart from that when she wanted to oblige us she would purr around, snuggle close, but on her own terms. We couldn't demand attention as she would just royally ignore us, when she was not in the mood. Cats incidentally are very hygienic, they don't need to be cared for like dogs, you don't need to take them for a walk, they are not leashed and live very much on their own terms. While being elder to the pup she would indulge him at times, let him share her bowl of milk, even teach him a few tricks at times, but whenever she felt that the idiot had crossed the line she would let him know who is the boss, with just one stroke of her paw, the bugger would be made to beat a hasty retreat yelping. Those days we did not have any video cameras otherwise we could have captured some really interesting and memorable clips of their activities. Unfortunately we lost her when she did not return after  one of her nightly prowls. We could not find her and presumed the worst.

The cat connection is back these days, with three of them, mother and her two kittens having adopted us. Having lost out companion of 12 years, Buddy, our labrador, two years ago, we had decided on not keeping a pet. But today there are three canines, three of these pussies,  you can watch their antics on insta https://www.instagram.com/reel/C_3C6NzvPLA/?igsh=YzljYTk1ODg3Zg==

Host of squirrels and birds who have  made our home a mini zoo of sorts. In fact we also have a snake to give us company once in a while, making his presence felt by peeping through the window occasionally. Thankfully the windows were screened through the wire-mesh, else this friendship may have gone southward. My buddy Mayank is not just an animal lover, he actually seems to be living just for them. He has taken it upon himself to feed all of them regularly, in fact I have had to restrain him from permitting the dogs entry into the house, but cats obviously don't bother with such trivialities. 

Getting back to the Republicans and the sacrilege which they have committed, my humble advice to them is that cats and cat people should not be messed around with and if they haven't seen the movie, "Garfield" or followed the comic strip by Jim Davis, they better do, else they better resign themselves to the fate of hapless Jon. Cats have nine lives, they,the Republicans have just one!!

Pension Pangs

 Let me tell you a story today, IC36916 Col (TS) Erumbala Krishna Umashankar was commissioned in the Corps of Signals on 19 Mar 1977. A happy go lucky officer who like most of his colleagues in that era did not ever bother about personal documentation and barring the CC to bankers, did not look at the pay slip either. Discussing pay and allowances or money matters earned you the moniker of a "baniya" amongst friends. So he stayed all his life, lived  on his own terms, retired happily in 2008 and when the time came to meet his maker, he just did equally casually in 2017. This could be the story of any old veteran, but the saga actually begins now, his widow Mrs Suma Nambiar, while cleaning up the attic came across his PPO, where to her horror, she discovered that her late husband was receiving the pension of a Lt Col and not that of a Col, as he rightly should have been getting. She approached a friend of her husband's Col KPM Das, again a veteran Signaller. He asked her to dig out the complete correspondence so that a case can be initiated to get this minor issue addressed. Obviously, it appeared to be clerical error which was overlooked all these years and will be corrected once the documents are forwarded to the Army HQ for issuing the necessary corrections. So he presumed. 

But bureaucracy in any organisation is not that simple, they need to go by the rules. The officer had retired on 31 Jan 2008. A lot of water had flowed under every bridge in these 9 odd years, we had moved on to digital age big time with Part II orders  (the casualty publication of any occurrence, birth, death, promotion, earning a qualification etc) themselves having shunned the physical aspect, i.e. no more paper, HRMS (Human Resource Management System) was in vogue now. Army HQ observed that the Part II order for the late officer's promotion was incorrect, as the date of promotion should have been 16 Dec 2004 as per AVSC (Ajay Vikram Singh Committee) recommendations, where as the date mentioned in the Part II order was 16 Feb 2005. The letter was sent to the unit where the officer was serving at that time.   Interestingly, there were a number of letters correspondence from Army HQ with officer's rank mentioned as Col (TS) but  in his PPO his rank was Lt Col, so PCDA Pensions naturally released the pension as per the rank mentioned in the PPO. 

 In short, this was not as easy as it appeared. Col KPM Das, always a good samaritan, started chasing the file and asked me if I could be of any help. He was my CO in Bison Signals and has been my friend, philosopher and guide ever since. We all know that networking goes a long way in all walks of life, but more so in the Army. By this time almost six years had elapsed. The veteran's pension had moved to the SPARSH portal. I forwarded the bumph of the documents to my friend and course-mate Lt Gen Sree Hari, who is the current DG Manpower in the Army HQ.  The documents comprised letters from the MS Branch regarding his approval in the Promotion Board, letters to the PCDA(O) for his DSOP, ADG MP for his medical examination pre-retirement, and so on, even his retired officer's I card where his rank was mentioned as Col (TS). Having known Sree, for over  four decades, I was sure that he will not only help out, but ensure that it is done quick time. His staff diligently went through the complete set of documents and unearthed that the Part II order published for his promotion by his last unit was put under an observation. The subsequent amended Part II order was despatched to the Army HQ without the signature of the Officer Commanding. Now there was a twist in the tale, the unit Defence Standardisation Detachment Cordite Factory Campus Aruvankadu (TN) published an amended Part II order but the OC forgot to sign the document and despatched it. Later the unit  was disbanded. So which unit  will publish the amended Part II order that too of a retired deceased officer? 

As the first step, the officer's pension was shifted to SPARSH. The next step was the publication of Gazette Notification, which was to be undertaken by MS branch. The MS Branch observed that a fresh Part II order has to be published by MP5. A case was taken up with PS Dte for the sanction for publication of the casualty. ORO (Officers Record Office) was not authorised to publish Part II orders of retired officers, so a case was taken up with MISO for allotment of SUS Number for MP 5 to publish these Part II orders. It had taken almost six months to reach here, but the battle was still on. Finally the module for publication of Part II orders for veterans was tested on HRMS and the first  Part II to be published on this module was that of Col Umashankar and forwarded to MS Branch for the Draft Gazette Notification. Thereafter the file was processed to PCDA(O) for initiating the claim, which was then approved by PCDA(P) and finally the amended PPO was issued.

 Today I am so proud of this wonderful organisation and also of the officers in the hierarchy who have spared no effort to get the dues of a deceased officer released to his widow. Having been there, done that, we are ware that bigger the organisation, longer the time for the wheels to trudge, but they do turn finally, only if we persevere. The challenge was daunting as there were number of agencies involved, and the credit is due to the relentless efforts of all the officers who were involved. The only concern that I have is, imagine the plight of an unlettered widow of our jawans who God forbids lands up in a similar problem, there is no way that she would be able to get her dues. Here, the DG himself was personally monitoring the case since it was brought to his notice. We need to look into this aspect as to how can we help just anyone and everyone to seek redressals without having to get the senior hierarchy personally involved in each such case.I would also like to impress upon all the readers to be particular about documentation, as they say, it’s not done till the paper work is done. Please check  and recheck your PPOs lest we leave our families with similar challenges.

We are like Quick Gun Murugan when we crib against anything and everything in our organisation. For a change may I through this blog convey my sincere gratitude to the complete staff in the Army HQ headed by my friend Sree, hats off to their sincerity, diligence and perseverance. Keep up the good work guys and make us proud. 

Darr ke Aage Jeet Hai

 

There are rules and there are laws, but then there are people who are above these mundane restrictions. We Indoreans are a cut above the rest, after all, we boast of belonging to the cleanest city in the country for a record seven times. We carry a chip on our shoulders and make it a point to economise on fuel consumption as well. Guess what, when there are three or four people wishing to go some place, we are prepared to rough it out and adjust on a single two wheeler. So much so that we make it a point not to travel if there are only two of us, but wait to get a third one to go with us. The traffic police are concerned about the pollution levels and the traffic congestion hence any two wheeler rider with just one or two riding them are subject to being hauled up for traffic violations. But three, four or at times even five is perfectly fine, the more the merrier, after all it is for a cause that we sacrifice our comfort. Most of us may not have heard of Chetwode and the Indian Military Academy credo of “…your own ease and comfort come last each and every time”, but we follow it religiously nevertheless. 

It is not just the number of pillion riders alone, which makes us special, but we are also daredevils as we believe in the dictum that helmets are for the sissies and avoid them like the plague. If for some reason, we are forced to carry them, then it is the elbow which adorns this headgear, as elbows need to be protected more than our heads. We are aware that our heads contain precious little and we could drive headless should the need arise, but elbows are an appendage which helps in steering the bikes as also for ‘elbow bending’

cometh the hour. Moreover the gush of wind which strokes our rugged persona and the flowing tresses go a long way in making a statement to the public at large and to our objects of attention about our larger than life image.

Traffic rules, well what are these, we have nothing to do with them. We are free birds and roam the streets in gay abandon with nothing to tie us down. So traffic lights and crossings serve a major purpose in displaying our skills at making a dash despite the incoming rush of vehicles from the opposite side. The motorcycle riders team of Daredevils of Corps of Signals of Indian Army can take a leaf out of our skills. Then we are also adept at demonstrating our manoeuvrability by squeezing through the tiniest of gaps between vehicles in our bid to emerge at the head. Our bravado is unmatched and even kamikaze pilots of Japanese Airforce can take a cue from our total disdain for ours or anyone else’s life. When we leave the premises in the morning even Gods cannot be sure whether we will be back in one piece. We can be compared to the revolutionaries as “Sar par kafan bandh kar hi to  hum chalte hain"

The municipality also helps us in honing our skills by ensuring that roads have adequate obstacles by means of potholes, unmarked speed-breakers and digging up large swathes of roads anywhere and everywhere to keep us guessing to make the whole exercise more interesting and challenging. During the monsoons, these potholes become puddles large enough to devour smaller vehicles and the trick is to negotiate them without flinching and emerging a winner. As the famous catchline for a famous ad goes, “Dar ke age Jeet hai!”

 

Devil Amongst Us

We have done it again! We seem to be really good at this, shameful but true we seem to excel here, RG Kar Medical College, Badlapur, Unnao, Kathua, Sandeshkhali...the list is endless. Have you ever wondered as to why do these horrifying incidents keep appearing in the news time and again? This can not be just a law and order issue, the rot lies deep within. We have been blaming the party in governance, the police investigations, the tardy judicial process and the general decline in the public morals. Yes all these are valid reasons but the most fundamental aspect which tends to be swept under the carpet is just one basic premise, the lack of samsakaras, bad grooming of our kids. In a healthy decent household, no, not rich or middle class, just any, where the kids are brought up on the right value system, where women although busy in their daily household chores are given their due regard and respect. The kids observe and imbibe that ladies are not required to be placed on a pedestal but just treated as equals, that ladies are persons with their own feelings and emotions which also needs to be respected. Even in hardcore patriarchal societies the women of the family had their say in the family matters and their honour was never compromised. 

The bottom line is we have overlooked this basic aspect of bringing up our kids, we have let them grow up to be rowdies with no respect for the fairer sex whatsoever. When we were in school 'Moral Science' was taught as a subject, where character building of children in that impressionable age was worked on. Somewhere along the way, this subject was dropped, so where and how do we work on the character of the young ones who will soon be a grown up youth expected to steer the family and the country on the path of growth and prosperity. I am afraid the answer is nowhere to be found, no wonder, 'character' as an attribute has done the disappearing trick in our country.

Money makes the mare go, all ills can be covered up, just buy whoever comes in the way, the complete legal process is in shambles. A criminal commits an offence, which criminals would always do, but then the cover up operation commences, where the Medical College authorities who are under the patronage of the local politicians and the biggest travesty is that the law enforcing agencies themselves become active accomplices. Isn't it ironic that we the citizens have to face the brunt? But then we too are to blame as we ourselves have handed over the reins to these goons by not being vigilant, have turned a blind eye to all their misdemeanours till we ourselves were the effected party. Merely parroting “Yatra naryastu poojyate ramante tatra devta” or “Beti bachao beti padhao”doesn’t help. In fact since we obviously don’t revere our women, the angels or devtas have disappeared and only devils seem to be roaming around,

The most ironical part this time around is that the state govt taking up cudgels to protect the culprits, as against the previous occasions such as Nirbhaya case where the govt of the day was in the docks and was on the defensive. The only reason is that the perpetrators this time around were under political patronage and needed to be protected for vested interest. It is obvious that they could not be sacrificed as their masters were linked and spilling of beans by the suspects could have knocked some high and mighty off their pedestals, may be even shaking the very edifice.

Everyone who is in anyway connected to the case must hang his or her head in shame rather than trying to justify this brutality. Has this sexual perversion epidemic  emerged all of a sudden or has this been latent somewhere, hiding away, just waiting in the wings to emerge from the shadows and shock the populace ? I think internet and the smart phones have definitely aggravated the  already perilous situation. 

So what exactly is the solution to this situation? Well, this issue needs to be addressed at multiple levels, firstly we must not let this whataboutery to continue, rape and murder anywhere irrespective of the govt and all political parties need to stand together as they do when it comes to raising their perks and allowances. Secondly, the long overdue police and judicial reforms need to be undertaken pronto. Unfortunately the policing in our country is not governed by the same set of ethos as those of the armed forces, where a failure of command leads to removal and court martial. The police officers serve the masters and not the people and are thus just transferred or suspended only to be reinstated later. If the DGP in this case was sacked as obviously post the crime, the shoddy investigations, the storming and vandalism of the hospital while police was a mute observer points to dereliction of duty. If the police chiefs were forced to face the music I am sure they would unequivocally stop looking at the political masters for directions and act as per the constitutional provisions. 

The silence of the so called liberals is also deafening, why is it that  every crime in a BJP governed state is commented upon by them, but in this case, cat seems to have got their tongues. We are concerned as citizens of this country, we deserve better governance and these criminals and their protectors must be punished in such an exemplary fashion that others don’t dare to cast an evil eye on women.